GAME TIME....girls were off to watch the ponies again! THE PREAKNESS 2014 RULES: At presant, there are 10 horses running. Rules are pretty much the same as The Kentucky Derby. This time SHIRLEY does not get to pick two horses...sorry! *To Shirley and each of her party guests (if you want to play), pick one horse and put your name next to it. DO NOT PICK a horse that someone has already chosen. *If you choose a horse and it is scratched, meaning for whatever reason it does not run in the race...to bad....LOL! *If you decide to play, please post your pick by 3PM Eastern/12 Noon Pacific on Saturday, May 17. If there are any horses left, I will put horse name(s) in a dog bowl...and in another dog bowl put all of the party guests that are playing.......and possibly you will get another horse. ******If per chance, you come late to the game and all the horses are spoken for, I will have another game....YOU WILL PICK WHO COMES IN LAST PLACE. I don't like excluding people from playing games and since there are only 10 horses and 17 possible OBF players....well, you can do the math....LOL! I will then post it for all to see. Prizes... WIN....1st PLACE...2nd SHOW...3rd And a prize for LAST PLACE if we go down that road! And if you will, as you each pick your horse, copy and paste the entire group of horses with names next to it, so everyone will know who has already been picked. Hope that makes sense! POST time..6:20PM Eastern on NBC I have removed ODDS, Jockey info. So take a guess on who will win THE PREAKNESS . Post Horse 1 Dynamic Impact 2 General a Rod 3 California Chrome 4 Ring Weekend 5 Bayern 6 Ria Antonia 7 Kid Cruz 8 Social Inclusion 9 Pablo Del Monte 10 Ride On Curlin GOOD LUCK!! Annie

Betty, I LOVE the pink tablecloth in your tea setting. If you hadn't told us, I wouldn't have known it was plastic. It is such a pretty colour and goes so well with your beautiful dishes. What I find particularly appealing (besides sweet Hanna and the yummy food!) are the candlestick holders you used...I love candles of all sorts and those are great. Are they crystal? Thanks for keeping this post going, it's a good one! DD

Thank you so much for your kind post! I have been planning this one for a while. I throw a lot of parties and often find myself so stressed and rushed on the day that I barely have time to shower before the first guests arrive! So this time I have vowed to be ultra-organised, with basically everything made ahead and just requiring reheating. I live in Sydney, Australia, which also gets quite hot in summer (the party's in November) so I am planning to only have the dips and cheese out for an hour or so until the other stuff is ready. Here is the recipe for the chicken balls - I apologise that all measurements are metric: Spicy Hoisin Chicken Balls (Makes 60) 1 kg chicken mince 1 T light soy sauce 3 cups breadcrumbs 2 t ginger 1 small onion, chopped 1/2 teaspoon sesame oil 2 cloves garlic, crushed 1/4 teaspoon 5 Spice powder 1 egg, beaten 1/3 Cup oil for frying 1/4 cup hoisin sauce - Heat oven moderate - Combine mince, crumbs, onion, garlic, egg, sauces, ginger, sesame oil and spice. - Mix well and shape into 60 balls - Heat oil and cook balls in batches until browned. Drain on absorbent paper. - Transfer to oven tray and bake 15 minutes or until cooked through. I'll keep you posted!

i have a real problem with time management and often misjudge how long it will take me to do something... so i always appreciate when guests to my house come a little later than is on the invite! if they come early (very rare!) or on time (also rare!), i certainly let them in tho! but, i am much more distracted when others are with me so it's easier for me to finish up last minute details if i don't have a 'helper'. as a guest, i usually come a 1/2 hr late or more if it is a big party, but if it is a dinner party i try to be much more conscientious and try to get there on time. my mom struggled with time management too, so i didn't grow up with the '5 min early is on time, on time is late and late is unacceptable' motto ... i think how you are raised is somewhat responsible for how you feel about being on time or late for occasions...